MANILA, Philippines – The overseas Filipino worker (OFW) community in Myanmar has appealed to the Philippine government to relax travel restrictions, citing missed opportunities, longing to see their families, and feelings of “safety” more than a year since the February 2021 military takeover in the country.

The community, which included both Filipinos still working in Myanmar and those in the Philippines who are looking to go back to Myanmar, appealed to the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) to lift the country’s Alert Level 4 status.

In July 2021, the DFA imposed Alert Level 4 on Myanmar due to the “worsening COVID-19 situation” in the country. Under this alert level, the DFA urged Filipinos to leave Myanmar as soon as possible, “as the healthcare system in the country is close to reaching its maximum capacity and may not be able to provide adequate medical attention to Filipinos who become ill in the coming weeks.”

Many Filipinos opted to stay, however, because they had well-paying jobs. According Rappler’s interview with members of the community on June 20, or more than a year after the Alert Level 4 imposition on Myanmar, some chose to stay even if they could go home, as they feared they would not be able to return to Myanmar easily.

The community has submitted two petitions to the DFA – one in November 2021, and another in June 2022 – asking the DFA to lift the alert level. The June 6 petition was signed by 165 Filipinos in Myanmar and in the Philippines.

The DFA has yet to lift Alert Level 4 on the country, even though Myanmar’s COVID-19 cases have not returned to the levels of the July 2021 peak. Myanmar has also been reporting less than 200 weekly COVID-19 cases since April 2022.

In an email to Rappler on June 28, the Philippine embassy in Yangon confirmed that the community’s June 6 petition was with the DFA in Manila. They also said that Alert Level 4 was implemented due to the “escalation of violence,” and not the COVID-19 situation.

“Meantime, Alert Level 4 remains from when it was raised last year primarily due to the conflict and the escalation of violence in the country,” Brenda Hilongo of the embassy’s consular section wrote to Rappler.

But members of the Filipino community said they feel “safe” in Yangon as the country’s political situation has relatively calmed down since the coup began.

For now, the Filipinos stuck in the Philippines lament opportunities going to waste, while the OFWs in Myanmar long to be with their families.

Filipinos are being replaced by other foreigners who can go there

Myanmar has opened its borders to foreigners beginning April 2022. In their June 2022 petition, the Filipinos reported that other foreign workers have been returning to major areas in Yangon, where key places “are already normalizing.”

“Particularly in Yangon, international, private, and government schools have opened with face-to-face classes. Banks, hospitals, and transportation have also started going back to normal operations,” the petition said.

Madelyn Adamos is the only Filipino who has been working onsite at an international school in Yangon. All other Filipino employees in the school have been working remotely from the Philippines, which has worked since the school had been conducting online classes since the pandemic began.

However, the school has begun shifting to face-to-face classes, causing worries for the Filipinos in the Philippines over their job security.

“What will happen to the Filipinos who are working from the Philippines? They will lose their jobs. Not just in our school – there are other international schools opening face-to-face classes as well. Many Filipinos are being replaced by other foreigners who can go there,” said Adamos in a mix of English and Filipino.

“Hindi ako makauwi ng Pilipinas kasi (I cannot go home to the Philippines because) I’m afraid to lose the opportunity to work here in Myanmar. Many Filipinos will lose their jobs and they’ll be missing their families,” added Adamos.

Romy Mateo, a consultant in the oil and gas industry, and Maureen Capisnon, a sales manager in a bag production company, also reported that their companies have begun considering hiring other foreigners since Filipinos cannot be deployed to Myanmar.

“Meron din kasi kaming mga Chinese at Vietnamese working with us dito, pero nagtitiwala sila more in Filipinos, dahil sa lengguwahe – edge natin ‘yan sa ibang nationalities – and our capabilities and skills. Kaya ang company namin, hiningi tulong ko to reach out to the others,” said Capisnon.

“Need kasi ng special skills from our Filipino side. Kaya malaking bagay na makapunta dito ang aming mga kasamahan,” she added.

(We also have Chinese and Vietnamese working with us here, but [the company] trusts more in Filipinos, because of the language – that is our edge versus other nationalities – and our capabilities and skills. That’s why my company asked for my help to reach out to the others…. They need the special skills that Filipinos have. That’s why it’s a big deal that our colleagues must be allowed to come here.)

In their petition, the Filipinos estimated an average monthly salary of $3,325 (P183,272) among the highly skilled OFWs in their community ranging from teachers, engineers, creatives, managers, and executives. “This roughly represents the amount of remittance potentially lost per month per OFW if [they] are not able to return to work,” the Filipinos wrote.

Meanwhile, OFWs in Myanmar hope to be able to visit their families in the Philippines with the assurance that they can still come back to their work abroad.

“May internet available, pero iba pa rin…. Mahirap ‘yung hindi mo nakakaharap pamilya mo nang face-to-face, ‘di mo sila mayakap…. May epekto ‘yan sa mental health ng tao eh, ‘yung hindi ka makakauwi. Lalo na sa ‘min na nasa gitna ka ng dagat,” said Mateo.

(There is internet available, but it’s different…. It’s difficult to not be with your family face-to-face, when you cannot embrace them… Not being able to go home has an effect on one’s mental health, especially for us who are sea-based.)

‘Safer’ than before

More than a year since the military seized power in Myanmar in February 2021, members of the Filipino community in Myanmar told Rappler that the situation was more “stable” now.

“The situation here now, compared to last year, is more stable. It is normal for the military to conduct rounds, but it’s very safe and peaceful here now…. For more than a year, there have not been any clashes. We have not recorded instances where a Filipino encountered a problem.” said Jeff Libid, Yangon-based president of Filipino community Pilipin@s.mm.

“Maybe 99% almost back to normal, but then of course there are still some bad news occurring in the mountains and outskirts of the cities,” said Joemer Ubiña, a business development manager also based in Yangon.

Local media in Myanmar continue to report on junta casualties in the countryside. Amnesty International reported that as of December 9, 2021, fighting between the military and other armed forces, as well as indiscriminate attacks and attacks directed at civilians primarily by the military have led to the displacement of more than 284,700 people. The number of people killed in the military’s crackdown on its opponents has risen above 2,000, according to a UN expert.

‘Yung America may hate crimes. Mas maraming napapahamak [na Pilipino]. Mga naaapektuhan na helper. Pero how come, kung ico-compare mo ‘yung incidents, mas maraming nangyayari sa kanila pero open sa kanila. Dito, walang napahamak na Pilipino.

Jeff libid, filipino community president

As of posting, the DFA has not responded for comment on the latest update on the Filipinos’ petition.

“We also continue to appeal to Filipinos still in Myanmar to abide by the Alert Level 4,” the Philippine embassy in Yangon said. – Rappler.com